Gas Stations

Cary, N.C. – The Pantry, Inc. reported a net loss of $5.1 million in its first quarter of fiscal 2014, up from a net loss of $3.1 million the first quarter of the prior fiscal year. Revenues fell 5% to $1.8 billion from $1.9 billion, although same-store sales rose 3.5%.

Houston -- Susser Holdings Corporation and Susser Petroleum Partners LP have closed their previously announced acquisition of the convenience store assets and fuel distribution contracts of Sac-n-Pac Stores, Inc. and 3W Warren Fuels, Ltd.

Giant Eagle is making a push into Indiana with a Market District concept and GetGo, a convenience store, planned just outside of Indianapolis, according to published reports.

According to reports, it will be the first Giant Eagle store in the state, and additional stores in the metro area might follow.

“We are thrilled to bring our Market District and GetGo concepts to Carmel and greater Indianapolis,” Giant Eagle CEO Laura Karet said in a statement. “We are also actively evaluating opportunities for additional locations.”

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- The U.S. convenience store count increased to 151,282 stores as of December 31, 2013, a 1.4% increase (2,062 stores) from the year prior, according to the 2014 NACS/Nielsen Convenience Industry Store Count. Convenience stores account for 34.3% of all retail outlets in the United States, according to Nielsen, which is significantly higher than the U.S. total of other retail channels including drug stores (41,378 stores), supermarket/supercenter (37,459 stores) and dollar stores (24,853 stores).

Kroger is test-marketing the giving of 1,000 "fuel points" toward discounted gas for each transferred prescription versus the traditional $25 Kroger gift card, according to a blog published on The Houston Chronicle website Wednesday.

New York --  Sam’s Club will open two new clubs on Thursday, January 23, one in Warwick, R.I., and another in Mooresville, N.C.

The 136,000-sq.-ft. Warwick club has created 140 new jobs. Also 136,000 sq. ft., the Mooresville club has created 160 new jobs.

Both clubs will feature a variety of members-only amenities, including a fresh bakery, a tire and battery center, a café and a fuel station.

New York --- Brookshire Brothers, based in Lufkin, Texas, has entered into an agreement to David's Supermarkets, a 25-store chain based in North Central Texas. Terms were not disclosed.

"We feel like these family-owned stores align with our core value that we are a celebration of family and community," stated Jerry Johnson, president and CEO of Brookshire Brothers. 

Brookshire Brothers operates 123 outlets including grocery stores, convenience stores, free standing pharmacy, tobacco and petro locations.

Altoona, Pa. — Sheetz Convenience Restaurants has opened two new locations in North Carolina. One is a 6,400-sq.-ft. store in Goldsboro, featuring a drive-through window, inside seating and a large shopping area. It will be the 59th Sheetz in the state.

The second store will open in Elkin, bringing the total number of North Carolina stores to 60.

Atlanta -- First Data Corp., in its SpendTrend analysis for December, reported that dollar volume grew 6.1%, which marked a significant spike compared to November’s growth of 4.4% as holiday shoppers were out in full force with no time to procrastinate due to the shortened holiday shopping season.

SpendTrend tracks same-store point-of-sale data by credit, signature debit, PIN debit, EBT, closed-loop prepaid cards and checks from nearly four million U.S. merchant locations serviced by First Data.

Saratoga Springs, N.Y. -- Stewart’s Shops, a chain of 300 convenience stores offering gasoline and fresh and local dairy products and ice cream, has deployed Paragon Software’s Single Depot solution to automate the planning of daily and seasonal deliveries. Paragon’s software automates the manual process of planning and scheduling deliveries to the retail outlets, lowering mileage, reducing fuel usage, and improving truckload efficiencies.